Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture – Surface bonding means and/or assembly means therefor – Presses or press platen structures – per se
Patent
1995-12-13
1997-06-24
Sells, James
Adhesive bonding and miscellaneous chemical manufacture
Surface bonding means and/or assembly means therefor
Presses or press platen structures, per se
156227, 1565831, B32B 3120
Patent
active
056413793
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to equipment for producing an article made of thermoplastic material and having an undercut cross-section, particularly for internal linings for motor vehicles, such as an internal door-lining panel or a vehicle door-handle integral with the lining panel or fixable thereto.
Although the invention has been developed with particular reference to components for the internal fittings of motor vehicles, it is not intended to be limited to this field and can be used whenever it is desired to produce a component having an undercut cross section and composed of a sheet of thermoplastic material which may be covered and which is shaped by thermal compression-moulding.
In the specific field of the moulding of sheets of thermoplastic material, considerable difficulties are encountered in the production of the dies when a component with an undercut cross-section is to be produced. In fact, the conventional technique for the thermal compression-moulding of sheets of thermoplastic material consists of compressing the sheet to be moulded between the shaping surfaces of two moulding elements, which involves the need to form the moulding elements with movable portions in order to produce projections which are disposed at angles of less than 90.degree. to the direction of the relative movement of the moulding elements.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In older to overcome the aforementioned problems, the subject of the present invention is equipment for producing a component of a thermoplastic material and having an undercut cross-section, particularly a handle for motor-vehicle doors, comprising a first moulding element having a working surface the shape of which corresponds to a portion of an outer surface of the component when completed; a second moulding element having a shaping surface which, in a moulding operation, is spaced from the working surface of the first moulding element by a distance substantially corresponding to a thickness of the thermoplastic material; a pair of sliders, at least one of the sliders being disposed in slidable engagement with the first moulding element and defining a cavity having a working shaping surface, the slider being movable from an inoperative position wherein the cavity is spaced from the working surface of the first moulding element, to an operative position wherein the surface of the cavity is a continuation of the working surface of the first moulding element; and a compressed-air supply means carried by the second moulding element, for directing jets of compressed air against the edges of the thermoplastic material to deform the edges thereof and force them into the cavity to provide an undercut cross-section to the component upon completion of the moulding operation.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the appended drawings, provided purely by way of non-limiting example, in which:
FIG. 1 is a schematic, perspective view of a motor-vehicle door having an article produced by equipment according to the present invention,
FIG. 2 is a section taken on the line II--II of FIG. 1,
FIGS. 3 and 4 are schematic views showing the operation of a first embodiment of equipment according to the invention, and
FIGS. 5 and 6 are schematic views showing the operation of a second embodiment of the equipment according to the invention.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
With reference to FIG. 1, a motor-vehicle door is indicated 1 and a lining panel 2 with a handle 4, which also forms an armrest 6, is fitted on the inner side thereof. The handle may be constituted by a separate component fixed to the lining panel 2 or may form an integral part thereof.
As can be seen in FIG. 2, the handle 4 has an undercut cross-section having a generally channel-shaped configuration with an arcuate portion 8 and two ends 10 which face one another.
With reference now to FIGS. 3 and 4, the handle is produced by a thermal compression-moulding process, starting with a previously-he
REFERENCES:
patent: 5080742 (1992-01-01), Takahashi
patent: 5201981 (1993-04-01), Whiteside
patent: 5324384 (1994-06-01), Spengler
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